Groton School

Groton unlocks students’ potential in many ways, not least of which is by teaching intriguing academic content, stressing the primacy of critical thinking and problem-solving, and enabling and enhancing communication skills in a world of rapidly changing media and technology. Ultimately these skills, and a well-honed work ethic, lead to good decision-making, mindfulness, and creative approaches—ingredients that produce leaders. But Groton is known not only for its 130-year legacy of enhancing leadership skills, but also for building character in those who aspire to lead.

None of this is accidental. Groton’s excellence emanates from time-tested traditions, traditions of service with humility, student prefects, nightly handshaking, the freedom of rather than from spirituality, and a campus built around a Circle—open to the west and open to ideas. The School’s openness to ideas from other environments and cultures fosters a spirit of inclusion, one that has made my family and me feel welcome. We know what it means to be excluded, having arrived in America nearly three decades ago from South Africa, where we fought for inclusion. We are inspired by our own family of educators, visionaries who made a difference through education, and we proudly carry their values to Groton.

In a school of 370 students, everyone matters. Those who attend Groton are united by a deep commitment of one to another and of each to the whole. Integrity and civility, qualities sometimes overlooked today, remain important at Groton. The School’s intimacy and ideals foster inclusion and inspire students to understand their strengths and capabilities.

A Groton education is thorough. Increasingly rare in secondary schools are opportunities to study two languages or take six courses, but Groton students can. Alongside traditional curricula are innovative approaches to instruction, such as the dynamic math and science classes in our STEM program. Superior performance on standardized tests, high rates of admission to selective colleges, and impressive performance in both undergraduate and graduate institutions demonstrate the advanced scholarship of Groton students.

Groton believes that adolescents should expand their vision, not narrow it. Students develop the talents they know well, but also explore new arenas. The School offers an intimate setting and an array of opportunities found more typically at much larger institutions. At Groton, we avoid the contemporary emphasis on specialization. Groton scholars, athletes, actors, and musicians leave the School prepared to excel at the highest levels in college, but do so with heightened self-awareness of their abilities and interests in multiple areas—including many they would not have dreamed of discovering before Groton.

Groton offers Upper School students a full slate of electives, but students also may design tutorials, which are concentrated scholarship in subjects of special interest, under the guidance of a faculty member. The afternoon program can be individualized as well: a Faculty-Sponsored Activity or FSA allows students in-depth study of anything from extended research in a chemistry lab to the formation of a rugby team. The entire faculty serves as a resource to each student, a hallmark characteristic of founder Endicott Peabody’s emphasis on a School modeled after a family.

Groton students love their traditions, and there are a lot of them to love. These are not empty rituals, but practices that support our sense of community. Perhaps most important is the structured routine at the beginning and end of each day. We begin together listening to a Chapel Talk and hearing announcements at Roll Call. We end the day with check-in, when members of each dormitory talk about the day’s events and shake hands with the teacher on duty before turning in. At the end of each School year, every student lines up to shake the hand of every teacher. Surprise Holidays, St. Mark’s Days, the school birthday dinner, Lessons and Carols, and many other traditions are eagerly anticipated and give each year a comfortable sense of familiarity.

Groton benefits from having a higher endowment per student than all but a handful of independent schools or colleges. The School's resources support teachers' professional development; a generous financial aid budget; a global education program that stretches into Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America; and facilities with more square footage per student than at any comparable school. All of this means opportunity for students, and experiences rarely found at the high school level. The Groton experience has succeeded for generations, inspiring our graduates to lead lives of meaning and purpose.